Copper Mountain Announces Production Guidance for 2018
TSX: CMMC
VANCOUVER, Jan. 17, 2018 /CNW/ - Copper Mountain Mining Corporation (TSX: CMMC) (the "Company" or "Copper Mountain") announces production guidance for the 2018 year.
Production from the Copper Mountain mine in 2018 is planned to be 80 million pounds of copper (+/- 5%) for the year, based on a mill throughput rate of 40,000 tpd and a mill feed grade of 0.31% copper. In addition, annual gold production is estimated to be in the 25,000 to 30,000 ounce range, while annual silver production is estimated to be in the 275,000 to 325,000 range in 2018. The planned mining rate is estimated at 190,000 tonnes per day for the 2018 year.
Copper production in 2017 was limited in the first half of the year because of the planned SAG gear change in April 2017. Outside the SAG gear change, the mill operated in the 40,000 tpd range for the balance of the year. The above design mill throughput is producing a coarser grind which negatively impacts recoveries, but maximizes copper production. A geomet program was initiated in 2017 and has been used to define 2018 recoveries as the mine has a small section of finer grained ore that is high in pyrite and experiences lower recover in the saddle area. This small section of lower recovery ore is scheduled to be completed milling in Q1 of 2018. Mine site personnel continue to implement optimization strategies to maximize copper production. A column flotation upgrade and flash flotation circuit installation are in progress and will be commissioned in 2018 to improve recovery. A study is in progress investigating the economics of adding additional grinding capacity to improve the grind and associated recovery.
Upcoming: Copper Mountain awaits the final results from the encouraging New Ingerbelle drilling program in late 2017.
About Copper Mountain Mining Corporation:
Copper Mountain's flagship asset is the Copper Mountain mine located in southern British Columbia near the town of Princeton. The Company has a strategic alliance with Mitsubishi Materials Corporation who owns 25% of the mine. The Copper Mountain mine has a large resource of copper that remains open laterally and at depth. This significant exploration potential is being explored over the next few years in order to fully appreciate the property's full development potential. Additional information is available on the Company's web page at www.CuMtn.com.
On behalf of the Board of
COPPER MOUNTAIN MINING CORPORATION
"Jim O'Rourke"
Jim O'Rourke, P.Eng.
Chief Executive Officer
Note: This release contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements may differ materially from actual future events or results. Readers are referred to the documents, filed by the Company on SEDAR at www.sedar.com, specifically the most recent reports which identify important risk factors that could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to review or confirm analysts' expectations or estimates or to release publicly any revisions to any forward-looking statement.
SOURCE Copper Mountain Mining Corporation
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